First, I have a new release coming out July 1, 2020. Better Have Heart. This is Book 2 in Anyta Sunday and my new series. I’ll add the promo stuff at the end of the post.
Pride
In years past, I’ve written about Pride in my June posts. Last year I talked about how it had been a decade or more since I’d went to a Pride parade and even longer since I’d walked/marched in one. I had been hopeful to do it again this year and to bring ‘lil q with me. Then of course, COVID-19 happened.
A small part of me worries there won’t be a return to the parades of old once we clear this pandemic. If that happens it will be a shame. DC was/is one of the last area’s to reopen in the USA. The city and its surrounding areas were hard hit, so they’ve been extremely cautious to open back up. Judging from the results of other states that declared victory and reopened, it was a very smart choice.
Pride is a many faceted thing. Initially it was about visibility, protesting, and a call for civil rights. As we slowly gained those things, it became more of a celebration. When I first went to the parades, the only sponsors or advertisers were members of the community and a few courageous allies. Fast forward twenty years and it was big companies seeking our businesses. It was hard to find the little community businesses anymore. (That is in part because so many have gone away.)
But with Trump’s campaign folks audaciously saying in the media, if you’re anti-LGBTQ rights, vote for Trump, we are under siege again. Politicians in Kansas are running on an anti-trans rights platform. The climate has changed. Maybe it’s not as bad as 1990 when I first marched, but it has also been better. Isn’t it something that we all were shocked and amazed that the SCOTUS actually ruled in our favor? Shouldn’t this have been a duh moment. Should people have said “LGBTQ discrimination is not allowed. Not shit of course it isn’t.” Instead, we nervously awaited the ruling trying to determine how we’d deal with the fall out of the negative ruling we expected.
Sadly, this divisive mentality isn’t only directed at the LGBTQ community. As the protests that have been going on for weeks have shown, Trump and Comp. are an equal opportunity discriminator.
There is hope. There is always hope. The majority of people aren’t buying the hate rhetoric. Major companies are leading the charge for equality and although, they have a LOT still to do, that they are doing anything when they don’t have to is a positive sign.
The fight isn’t over. I’m not sure it will be in my life time, but that doesn’t mean we don’t keep fighting. And just because we couldn’t get together this year to march, protest, and celebrate, doesn’t mean we still shouldn’t celebrate what we have earned, what we can achieve and all those who are taking up the fight from the hands of old warriors who got us this far.
Happy Pride 2020!
Better Have Heart
Available July 1, 2020.
They hate everything about each other, so why do they harmonize so well?
Isaiah Nettles wants a chance. A chance to help his family.
The prestigious Gage Scholarship will secure his future. He needs this.
The competition might be hot, but Darren Gage is a golden child.
No way will Isaiah let an entitled rich kid be handed the award.
But what if Darren is more than an entitled rich kid?
Darren Gage wants to be seen. Seen as more than just his name.
The Gage Scholarship will let him shine. He needs this.
Sure, Isaiah is insanely sexy—and right to stand up for himself—but he is the competition.
No way will Darren let just anyone take his legacy.
But what if Isaiah isn’t just anyone?
“Better Have Heart” is an enemies to lovers, slow burn M/M romance with a HEA. This New Adult, college, opposite attract, rich-boy poor-boy novel can be read as a standalone.
Andy Gallo:
Andy prefers mountains over the beach, coffee over tea, and regardless if you shake it or stir it, he isn’t drinking a martini. He remembers his “good old days” as filled with mullets, disco music, too-short shorts, and too-high socks. Thanks to good shredders and a lack of social media, there is no proof he ever descended into any of those evils.
Andy does not write about personal experiences and no living or deceased ex-boyfriends appear on the pages of his stories. He might subconsciously infuse his characters with some of their less noble qualities, but that is entirely coincidental even if their names are the same.
Married and living his own happy every after, Andy helps others find their happy endings in the pages of his stories. He and his husband of more than twenty years spend their days raising their daughter and rubbing elbows with other parents. Embracing his status as the gay dad, Andy sometimes has to remind others that one does want a hint of color even when chasing after their child.
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Harrison Campus:
Book 2 Better Have Heart:Available July 1, 2020:
Book 3 Better Be True: Available August3, 2020
Website: www.andygallo.com
Email: andy@andygallo.com
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I finished it and it was great!